I spend way too much time reimagining my favorite games. This is a design from The Lament of Zelda, a Hylian tragedy. Inspired by the intro to Wind Waker, it begins with Link awakening to his heroic destiny far too late to stop Ganondorf. It would be a Zelda game that you could never win. The Lost Woods have been clear cut, Zora's Domain is clouded with industrial sludge, Lake Hylia is dry, Death Mountain is being stripmined...

This character is a Goron, a race of living rocks that has been in most or all of the zelda games after A Link to the Past. He, along with a handful of other Goron, was hired to excavate the shrine that holds the Master Sword and drag the entire structure back to Hyrule Castle where it would be kept under guard to ensure that Link could never retrieve it.

I have this image in my head of Ganon's army surrounding Link and Zelda on the edge of a cliff. Has a game ever ended with a lover's suicide before?

Zelda, of course, is the property of Nintendo, and this is just fanart.

I really like it when people take games that are, for the most part, rather innocent and dig deeper - past the surface - and create a whole new level to the game. This is, by far, the most impressive thing I've ever looked at and read.

Their is just one fatal flaw in Ganon's plan, Link is the Hero! and as such is destined to pown all followers of evil, including ol Ganon himself. Tell me that you honestly think any amount of shit could stop Link He fought a Giant Gohma thing at ten fer Farore's sake! in all seriousness though Link will Prevail NO MATTER WHAT!!!!!You draw exquisitely well by the way

I would really like to see that image of Link and Zelda on the cliff. I really like your vision of a ruined Hyrule, and the style of drawing like in the picture of the Goron really exemplifies that beautifully. Love to see more from you.

Have you seen the new design for the upcoming zelda-title "skyward sword"? Now that I see your vision of the characters, it upsets me even more that Nintendo refused to head into a darker direction with the new game... One day perhaps!

For me though - looking at this big guy it looks to me like he could have a lovely inside. While forced to live the brutal and blunt lifestyle of just an excavator in public, this creature oddly seems like under the roughness he would be really sweet. ;

Wow, that story sounds really tragic, but all the more very interesting. I would certainly be interested in seeing a Zelda taking this darker (but not for sake of being dark), deeper route with an emphasis on the story and empathy for the doomed characters.

Your design for the Goron itself looks amazing. It's a unique rendition and really portrays the Goron's earthy ruggedness in a bleak setting.

I'd really like to see more of this, and that ending in your comment sounds pretty sad, but powerful-- if handled correctly.

Excellent concept and character design, though. A great description of setting and character purpose as well.

Since the days of A Link to the Past, I've always kind of daydreamed about the "Great War" that occurred when the Golden Land was first discovered; the one that nearly obliterated the Hylian Knight's lineage.